A Fire in the Dark
by DeepBlueFlare
Summary: 10 years after Red had defeated Team Rocket, and the world seems to be at peace. Or does it? A new rising of Team Rocket is now taking place, and the only ones who can stop it are a mysterious girl, a banished tribesman and a strange man who has secrets.
1. Girls of Ghosts

**This is a Kuri-chan Chapter. I hope you enjoy**

Chapter 1, The Girl of Ghosts

It was morning, the time the sun would decide to show itself, yet the skies remained dark and gray. Rain dripped from the heavy clouds and plummeted to the earth. Lightning flashed in the skies and thunders roared. No one would dare step outside into the pouring rain. Except, one girl who walked alone down the muddy path heading west of Lavender Town, to Saffron City. Rain washed over her, yet she walked a slow steady pace up the long trail of mud.

She was alone, no human or Pokemon beside her. Just the small bag on her back and her dull shadow to keep her company. A frown was permanently marked on her fragile face. Heavy bangs of indigo and black nearly covered her darkened purple eyes. She seemed to glow in a ghostly pale complexion on this gloomy rainy day. The girl did not even have an umbrella to keep herself safe from the rain.

Before the small town was out of her sight, her head turned and her tracks stopped dead. She stared at all the street lamps which flickered in the rain. Then, her eyes turned to the one place she had once called home; a large pillar-like tower her town called, "The Spirit Tower." A tear came to her eye as she saw it being drenched in rain. Thoughts of her life flooded her mind as she stared at it.

Her family had taken care of the Spirit Tower for generations. They made sure the spirits of not only Pokemon, but humans as well could rest peacefully. As a child, she would help take care of the tower and many times would spend countless hours playing with the lonely ghost pokemon. For like her, they were outcasts.

_No child would come and play with her. Sadly she sat on the swings of the playground alone. The small child with purple eyes watched as the children played gleefully. She wanted to join them, but every time she tried, the children fled from her as if she were a ghost herself. She was just about to leave as a young boy came and sat next to her on the swings. She watched him as he began to swing back and forth. He looked down to her as he swung up._

"_Hi there." The boy said cheerfully. The girl remained quiet and stared, almost in shock. "My name's Len. What's your?" he asked._

"_M-me?" The young girl asked him. No one had wanted to play with her. No one even wanted to know her name. She was a freak of nature to everyone else. Why would he want to know her name?_

"_Of course you. There's no one else around to ask." The boy replied to her with a smile. "What's your name?" he repeated._

"_Amorina…" she replied quietly._

"_That's a pretty name." The boy said as he jumped off the swing set and landed a few feet away. "Wanna' play Pokemon?"_

_The boy must have been ill in her mind. No one wanted to play with her. The only thing that would play with her were the ghost pokemon in the tower. "Um…Sure." She replied happily. She took his hand and began to lead him to the Spirit Tower. "But why pretend when we can play with real Pokemon?"_

_For months they had been friends, always playing with each other. But those memories pushed themselves out of the way and began to play a new one in her head like a movie. It was a quiet day and the two were playing once more. They were bouncing a large red rubber ball to one another. The ball bounced to the other side of the street. She went to get it, and her head turned up. Everything began to freeze at that moment. _

_A bus had rounded the corner, and even before she was able to cross, it was heading straight towards her. She screamed yet she didn't even hear herself. All she could remember now was being pushed and the bus hitting Len full contact. His body flew like a rag doll and he landed hard on the cement. Blood was everywhere and the bus slammed into a tree. She kept screaming and screaming until everything was over. Len died 3 days later in the hospital and it had been all her fault. The only memory playing now was the accident…All the blood and all the pain._

"You're thinking about it again…aren't you, Amorina?" a voice asked. She snapped out of her twisted daydream and turned to the source. From her shadow a large ball of gaseous matter appeared. Evil downturned eyes and a fanged smile looked at her. "You were crying and screaming his name again." It told her.

"I was?...Sorry." she said as she looked to the strange Pokemon before her. "I was just thinking…" Amorina said. Her eyes burned with invisible tears.

"I can tell..." it replied to her. The strange haunting Pokemon floated over to her. "You seem to be thinking of this a lot more. Are you okay?" Amorina nodded and stepped forward, continuing on the path she started on.

"I'm fine, Nocturne." Amorina said as her heavy bangs covered her eyes. Her path quickened, leaving the ghost pokemon behind. She stopped again and looked back to it. "Come on Nocturne. Saffron City is a long way away." She called to it.

Nocturne floated over to her. "Such a moody girl you are. Remind me again why I follow you around?" he asked as he floated around her head.

"Because if you didn't follow me around, you'd be pretty lonely." She said. Nocturne stuck out his tongue to her and continued to follow close behind. A long silence followed them.

"Why are we leaving? Aren't you afraid everyone will miss us?" Nocturne asked. His question shattered the silence like glass. Amorina shook her head.

"No…you saw what they did to me. They blamed me for everything. It's best if we leave…And I want to show them that I can be strong." She told him. "They treated me like a monster. But, I will treat you and every other Pokemon we capture…I will treat them with kindness." The rain continued to pour down on them and Nocturne looked to her.

"Ya' know, for people calling you a monster, you have a big heart." He told her with a fanged smile. She turned to him and finally brushed her hair from her eyes. "Honest. After all, I couldn't lie to you." Nocturne told her. She flashed him the faintest of smiles and held his circular spectral body. Pulling him close, gently she pressed her forehead against him, nuzzling him lightly.

Slowly she released him and looked back ahead of her. "Thank you…" Amorina said before continuing on. Nocturne followed her, eventually melding in with her faint shadow on the ground. Her footsteps were quiet in the heavy rain.

The two walked for hours, the rains not letting out anytime soon. Not looking to rest the two were forced to stop. Something very large and heavy was blocking their path. "What is that thing?" the purple eyes girl questioned as she starred at it.

"I think it's a Pokemon." Nocturne replied. "And it doesn't look intent on moving at the moment…Maybe we should go back. Doesn't your mother have something to wake any Pokemon up?" he asked as he floated about the large strange Pokemon.

"I am not going back…I can't…So, I guess we wait here until it moves." Her soft voice seemed muffled by the rain, though Nocturne understood. Seeing how it wasn't moving, she found a spot on the grass to sit and laid back on the chubby Pokemon. She noticed how soft and comfortable its blubbery skin was, much like a pillow in her opinion. At least the wait would be comfortable. "So we wait…" she said with a sigh.

**This is a Kuri-chan Chapter. I hope you enjoy**


	2. Aiden

** This is an Alex/Buddy chapter. Cheers **

Chapter 2: Aiden

Aiden stood outside of the lean-to hut accompanied only by his loyal canine, Warri. It was a damp morning and the light sprinkling rain was slowly beginning to pick up. As the two watched the sun rise in the east, Aiden wondered what he would do now. Where would he go? He knew no one outside of his tribe.

He sauntered back into the hut and began to pack the very few belongings he had ever known. He thought of yesterday's events. Yesterday was Aiden's sixteenth birthday. In the Arcane tribe of the East, it was a tradition that young men were given a trial as soon as they turned sixteen. This was the tribe's test of manhood.

Aiden closed the sack and looked around the small hut for the last time. He flung the bag over his shoulder and stepped out of the lean-to. His faithful partner followed him along the damp forest trail. Aiden's glance was held intensely upon the dirt trail as he lost himself in the foggy memories of yesterday. The memories of his failure surrounded him. He suffocated in the memory of his expulsion from the tribe.

It was all in front of him again. He relived the crystal-clear memories. He searched the dimly lit cave desperately for the fire red stone, but was unable to find it. After a long night of delving the dungeon, he emerged from the tunnel empty-handed. He will never forget the look of utter disappointment on his father's face.

On the spot he was disowned. His father was also the leader of the Arcane tribe, so not only did Aiden no longer have a father, but he was also shunned from the tribe as a whole. The man who used to be his father spoke a few calm words of disownment, shook his head, turned his back to Aiden, and slowly departed.

A loud argument broke the boy's silent concentration. Aiden whipped his head around to identify the voices. Aiden crept closer too the two figures and watched them from behind a nearby shrub. At a second glance, he realized that one was the leader of his tribe. He could no longer think of him as his father. The other, Aiden decided, was a stranger. He was a muscular man who was wearing a fancy black suit. The suit sleeve possessed a large, vibrant, red R.

At once Aiden remembered the tales of the legendary hero of years past. It was said that nearly ten years ago a child fought valiantly against the infamous Team Rocket. Aiden silently wondered about the R. It couldn't really be Team Rocket? They were defeated long ago, weren't they? However, there were rumors going around lately of a possible new rocket uprising and revival.

Captivated by intrigue, Aiden strained to listen to the conversation. He could hear very little, but it sounded as if the shady stranger was aggravated because the tribe leader would not agree to a transaction. The unknown man wanted to purchase several of the tribe's Arcanine. Aiden had never heard that word before, but he assumed the man was interested in the legendary canines of flame. The red stone he searched for in the cave the other day has magical properties. It would have transformed Warri into one of the legendary creatures.

Suddenly, the Rocket member had become violent. He shoved the tribal chief to the ground and threatened him. Aiden realized the severity of the situation. What used to be his tribe, his family, and quite possibly the rest of the world was in danger of the dastardly Team Rocket.

Aiden and Warri sprinted as fast as they could through the gloomy woods. Adrenaline, anticipation, and anxiety flew through their veins. Before they ever became aware of their lack of direction, they reached the end of the forest. Aiden came to an abrupt halt and took in the mysterious landscape. He had never traveled this far from tribal ground before.

Looking down the steep hill, Aiden was mesmerized by the sight of a somber town. He had yet to behold such structures. One particularly enormous tower cast an ominous shadow over the town. Aiden sensed the building was of great importance and he pondered what other grand phenomena the world possessed.

Aiden rode the thrill of his fantasies down the hill and into the overcast community. He scanned all of the foreign sights. Warri brought Aiden's attention to a small wooden sign. They had reached the quaint Lavender Town.

Lavender Town was still in a deep slumber. Aiden figured it was still early morning. The sun was barely visible and a blanket of night still covered the town. Aiden and Warri wandered the streets until they stumbled upon a marked path. A banner named the path "Route 8 to Saffron City."

Aiden knew nothing about Saffron City. Nevertheless, he determined someone in such a large city would be able to help him. All he could think of was his desire to prove himself to his former tribe. He needed to defeat the Rockets.

The two companions followed the road for several miles. By now it was distinctly day although the drizzling rain was persistent. But in the distance, Aiden spotted a massive round entity blocking the road. Aiden felt Warri's hesitation towards the being so they approached it stealthily.


End file.
